Bottle closure



Sept. 4, 1934. H. F. TEICHMANN BOTTLE CLOSURE Filed Feb. 7, 1953rnlnlilvllllllll Vnilrlitlliilll INVENTOR l atentecl Sept. 4, i934UNITEDF'ST-VAJ TESII- ATENToFFIC J 1,972,542 BOTTLE CLOSURE Henry' lfiiil eic'hniaxin, washingtomla. l Application February 7, 1933,' Serial No. 655,545 4 Claims. (01. 215 55) The invention relates "to aclosure for bottles,

particularly bottles in which ginger ale and other beverages are sold.A-bottle of the type to which I refer includes a long neck, terminatingin a mouth from which the beverage or other contained liquid isdischarged, andmy object is to provide a bottle closure which may besecured in place, without the aid of grooves, ridges, or lugs at oradjacent the mouth of the bottle. In accordance with my invention theupper neck portion of the bottle may be. absolutely smooth, presentingnone of the usual grooves or other surface irregularities in-which dustand other impurities may collect. Thus, the bottle is moresanitary inservice. 1

It is further the object of my invention to providea bottle closurewhich may be removed-by hand, that is, without the need of a bottleopener. Additionally, I-aimto provide a closure that may be .removed andreplacedat will, so. that, after-- the. bottle has been initially openedand partly emptied, the remaininglcontents of the bottle may atalltimesbeefiectively sealed, and'themouth of the bottle kept clean. x

The invention is illustrated in ing drawing, in which Fig. I, is afragmentary'view of a long-necked-bottle,showing in vertical section theclosure of my invention securedin'position of service over the mouth ofthe bottle Fig.- II is a view in'p'lan fromabove of the closure.

The bottle closure comprises twoprincipal:partst-;,

a-cap and a sleeve-, and Figs. III; IV, andVare.

views in cross-section, illustrating the. various forms in which thesleeve may be made. 1 Fig. VI is a view'in vertical sectionof the cap;Fig.

additionallyshows (in side elevation) a gasket:

member and stopper which normally are assembledwith and form apart ofthe cap' in serv-'-.

ice: iFig. VII a 'view in bottom plan of the cap without the gasketand'stopper. Fig. 'VIII 'is a View. in plan from above, and a. viewpartly in side elevation. and partly invertical section, .offacap ofmodified structure. Fig. IX shows" two similar [views of a cap embodying"still other: modi:-.

fications. And Fig. X is a fragmentary view of a bottle, showing.(partly in' side elevation and. partly in vertical section) the capstructure :of: Fig. IX in position'of service upon the mouth of 1 thebottle.

The bottle closure comprises a cup shaped cap H 7 v I of sheet steel orsheet aluminum of from Nos. 28

1 which ordinarily will be fashioned from sheet rwithin'itheimouth ofthe bottle, while the side wall theaccompany of the cap overliesandsnugly engages the outer, surface 30f the bottle neck. 1 The stopper 2may be made of cork, rubber, or other suitable yielding material,depending upon the nature of the liquid to bestored within the bottle,and adisk or gasket 4, conveniently of such material, issecured inposition against the top of thecap. As will be observed in Fig. I, thestopper plugsthe mouth'and 'snuglyengages the throat surface (5) of thebottle; the gasket 4 rests snugly against the rim or lip 6 of thebottle;and, as mentioned, the side wallof the cap snugly engages the outersurface 3 of the neck. Thus, substantially all of the terminal surfacesof the bottle neck are engaged by thecap, anda hermetic sealing of .thebottle is insured. In accordance with my aim, all of such terminalsurfaces are-smooth, affording no indentations'in which liquidfromwithin. or impurities from without the bottle may accumulate, as in thehands of the consumer the cap is removedfrom and replacedin position ofclosure upon the bottle. 1

I provide particularly eflective means for se- A curing the stopper andgasket in assembly with the cap 1. Such meanscomprise an elongate clip10.- 'Advantageously, the clip 10 is formed of a strip of sheet metalbent double, providing. atwo-legged stem which is rectangularincrosssection-,.cf. Fig. VII. .Manifestly, the two legs a and b are.united at oneend of the clip' and separableat its otherjend. The clip atthe bend;

spot-welded or otherwise secured at the top of .the cap; The gasket andstopper are each provided with a passage 11 corresponding incross-section. with the clip; the gasket and stopper are fitted upon theclip, and the ends of the legs aiandb are bent outward, underlying thebottom .of' the stopper, and effectively securing thezparts inassembly-(cf. Fig. I) i a .A sleeve v '7 is -pre ssed into snugsurface-tosurface engagementwith the cap l and theouter surface 3a.,ofthe bottle neck immediately below the cap. {The sleeve 7 constitutes anouterorf secondar'ylseal for the mouth of. the bottle. The sleeveordinarily is a preformed tube which is 100 pressedandfcrimped intoposition of .service upon the bottle neck It is a sleeve of substantialmaterial, as distinguished from the metal foil covers commonly placedover the capped ends of beverage bottlesi-indeed, the sleeve made 105 to'34 U. -S."Stand ardgauge. Such sheet metal is fashioned into a tube,having the meeting edges ofthe sheet united in a lap joint M, as shown 1inFig. III; Alternatively; the, meeting edges of the sheet may be unitedin a ship-joint 7b, as indicated in Fig. IV. For reasons presently to bedescribed the sleeve may be fashioned of the corrugated sheet shown inFig. V, and the meeting edges of the sheet may be lapped, so thatseveral corrugations are nested together, as shown at 70. Additionally,I contemplate that the sleeve may be cut to required length fromextruded metal tubing :WhOS8"W&l1:thlCkIlSSSSxCOIe' 10 responds to" thesheet gauges mentioned. I

The side wallof the cap 1 is provided with a raised portion which inassembly is snugly engaged by the outer sleeve '7. In efiect the cap-svand sleeve are interlocked, so that the consumermay grasp the outersleeve and work the clo sure free from the bottle. I show thexraisedportion in the cap wall as comprising an annular or circumferential bead12,"a"ndadvantageously" such bead is provided by flaring theperipheral;: rim of the cap 1, as shown in Fig. VI. In Fig.

I it will be perceived how in assembly the: outer."- sleeve 7'interlockswith the bead "12; .it will be observed that the outer#sleeve'? is elongate,.and it will be understood that inspositionupon:the, bottle the closure deviceconstitutesineffect a sturdy cylinderwhich the-consumer may readily grasp. 'I'o open the bottle, thezbottleis heldwin" theleft hand and the closure tightlyigrasped in the righthand, andthe-required forcetis apgcvplied to withdraw the cap and sleevetogether from the bottle. The external shape of theolosure, togetherwith itssturdiness, readily admitsv of the application of..the'iorcerequired to open-'- thebottle, sothat in the hands of the"userzthei bottle may be opened without theaidof-a bottleopeningetooliThe removalis more' readily -effected if the device is rotated slowly,before and. while it is being pulled fromthebottle;

It is desirable that the several elements: of the 40 :clo'sure besecuredone to another: against rela-e:

tive rotation,- so. thatirotation of. thessleeve 'will.

be accompanied by the rotation of fall; the. clo-.; sure elements. Thus,the. .usuall-adhesioniexisting between the stopper.xand:;bottlezmay''bezw -:broken, and theremovalbfthe device facilitated.

To this. end I form the ;..clip- 10 rectangular in? cross-section, andthe flatsides' oh the aclipgiri: lying within thecorrespondingly"shapeda'passages l1 in:the'stopper-2 and thewashergrinsure'ethat 0 sthe; cap, stopper, and. washer are secure :against:relative rotation; Thelegs' afbiof the. clip:10: may, as in Fig; I theyareshown, be turnedupii. at. theirtipsc, and pressed-laterally into the1 body material of -the stopper; to provide-aaddie; =itional means forpreventing :rotary Smovementrofi; the stopper within the cap.Ini'makingiai'pro- 1 vision for union of the cap and sleeve, I adva;r1---- tageously interrupt the peripheral '-bead--on'= the cap at one ormore-points13 (cf. Fig.- IX):- eo' 'lhe bead fot interrupted continuitymay be formed by rolling the-metal bordering therim" of the cap" (1a)"over and" upon small: wire 14,'. which; .wire, too, may be' interruptedin its extent at the points. 13," 13; "Thus, the. cap structure isrendered 'niore. sturdy1for the service to which itf'is put."WhenjtheOllteI 'f" sleeve.note the sleeve-7min FighX is. pressed '1intoposition over the cap .andnecklof the .bot-.- tle, the body metal ofthe sleeve .closely .enga'ges' the bead .15.and nests in theintervals orpoints.

13 or" interruption, asrnay. be noted:at-=16;: Am cordingly,: the outersleeve is united :WithfthB. :cap for both:rotationandiaxial movementi-Mani+- 1,: festly; it is a simple matterzto provide aimaohlnea:

that will press the outer sleeve into such position of assembly upon thebottle neck.

As indicated in Fig. V, the outer sleeve may be corrugated lengthwise,to render the device in service more secure in the hands of a personopening the bottle. It is contemplated that the corrugations shall inmost cases extend only part way of the length of the sleeve, theopposite end regions. of'the sleeve beingrrsmootht'forsnug engagementwiththe cap 1 and bottle neck,respectively, while the medial portion ofthe sleeve is corrugated in the manner mentioned.

1 When the bottle is opened and only part of its contents. arewithdrawn, the closure device may be'replaced in position of service,thus constitutingrattemporaryrstopper after its prime function as abottle sealhasbeen completed. In such use as atemporarystopper, theouter sleeve of the devicer' mayg'be removed and the cap structure 1, 2,4) used alone, or'the sleeve and cap structure may beusedtogether asa'temporarystopper upon-thebottle."

In= Fig? VIII, I show a modified cap: structure 1b, in which thestopperis provided by shaping in the top wall of the cap' a hollow cylindricali stud 2a Conveniently,-a:1ining 4c of: compressible material, such ascork,- is:applied to the topwall': and stud within thecap. Ma'nifestly,the caplb may be used exactly as the cap structurel, 2, 4 is used incombin'atio'n with the outer 1 sealing sleeve .7, to provide the closureofmy invention; Within the boss 2azI securea member 2c,-and (as may .beperceived in. FigQVIIIl the: member 1 may bear numbers; letters,*-or-:other data for designating the bottled liquid. It will be furtherobserved in-Fig. VIII .thatuthe boss 2a-and its cork covering'4cliewithin' thea'im of thecap; indeed,-the:stopper 2 .of: theflrst-described structure terminates within or above :the :rim, :sothat; when the cap is placed-aside, the stopper does not come in contactwithcdust: or other impurities.

Itischaracteristic of the invention that, where as =the 1usual'. bottle5 cap'iis --constructed of' rigid :1 metal, so that the cap maybe lockedin positionl over an 'annularprotuberance" which: is provided adjacentthe mouth'oi. the bottlegmytcapil is made of relatively soft metal!Inzservice the caps readily iadaptszitself to the surface of:ithe'zbottle neck; amitprovide's an extended surfabetof.;frlctionalengagem'ent :.with the bottle; The outer-; sleeve, inengaging-the :bottle neckibelowfthe capn provides additional surface:of--frictional .engage-. ment between the bottle :and the aclosure:devi'cey and the. stopper projecting: within the mouthrof 1. thebottle'provi'des still'another extended-surface of :ifrictionalz.engagementza These: extended: "sur faces offrictional:engagementzextendon theline. of separation of the \closure.rmm: therbottle; and serve :to' :secure-the aclosure" imposition of'service.

Inzbottles :whose contents. are under high presssurersuchzas bottledcarbonated :beverages, 1pm; vide; :a .apositive' interlocking :betweenmy "closure devicerand: the bottle s neckz' Advantageously; such:interlocking; issi i effected by": providing i a ridge+say''anixannular. ridge. lT'upon the snacking. of the bottle; of. Fig. IA.The:ridgeal'lzisklocated atsubstantial. interval below? the.-:beada=12iof: ithe cap iniiplace tuponrthe ibottle;=whereby; when the outersleeve '7 is pressed into position of.'service',i itzpositively 'engagesthe bead 12 and :the ridge-1.7 thus providing a positive securingrot-the. caprupon; the :bottle'.:. The-sleeve 17 int'such organization:is adapted: to secure z-thevclosure in 'placeragainst':theupressurezexisting within the bottleiu. In the: handscotrtheconsumenzhowever; .thewlosurermamlfim be turned and pulled free ofengagement with the ridge 17, and so the bottle may be opened in themanner described.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination with a long necked bottle, a bottle closure comprisinga cup-shaped cap seated over the mouth of the bottle, and a stoppersecured in said cap against axial displacement and rotation andprojecting into the throat of the bottle, together with an elongateouter sleeve engaging the side wall of said cap and extending downwardtherefrom and engaging the outer surface of the bottle neck, and meansfor securing the sleeve and cap against relative rotary and axialmovements, said sleeve being formed of relatively sturdy material,whereby to provide a handle by which the closure may be removed from thebottle.

2. In combination with a long-necked bottle, a bottle closure comprisinga cup-shaped cap seating over the mouth of the bottle and a stopperprojected into the throat of the bottle, mechanical means for unitingsaid stopper and cap and securing them together against relative rotaryand axial movements, an elongate outer sleeve engaging the side Wall ofsaid cap and extending downward therefrom into engagement with the outersurface of the bottle neck, and means for securing the sleeve and capagainst relative rotary and axial movements, said sleeve being formed ofrelatively sturdy material, whereby to provide a handle by which theclosure may be removed from the bottle.

3. In combination with a long-necked bottle, a bottle closure comprisinga cup-shaped cap whose side wall includes an annular bead, and a stoppersecured in said cap against relative axial displacement and rotation,said stopper projecting into and frictionally engaging the throat of thebottle neck, and the side wallof said cap overlying and frictionallyengaging the outer surface of the bottle neck, and an elongate outersleeve securely engaging said bead to prevent rotation and axialdisplacement of the sleeve relatively to said cap, said sleeve extendingdownward from said bead into frictional engagement with outer surface ofsaid bottle neck, and said sleeve being sufliciently rigid to form ahandle by which the closure may be removed from the bottle.

4. In combination with a long-necked bottle, a bottle closure comprisinga cup-shaped cap, a. stopper and an elongate outer sleeve, means forpositively securing said stopper in said cap against relative rotationand axial displacement, said stopper friotionally engaging the innersurface of the bottle neck, and the side wall of said cap frictionallyengaging the outer surface of said neck, said sleeve overlapping theside wall of said cap and extending downward therefrom into engagementwith outer surface of the bottle neck, and means for uniting the cap andsleeve for common rotary or axial movement, and said sleeve beingsufiiciently rigid to form a handle by which the closure may be removedfrom the bottle.

HENRY F. TEICHMANN.

